


A Dream of Light and Dance

by J_J_Janson



Series: Tied Across Time [2]
Category: Fate/Grand Order
Genre: Angst, Character Study, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-03
Updated: 2018-04-03
Packaged: 2019-04-17 16:03:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,295
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14192643
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/J_J_Janson/pseuds/J_J_Janson
Summary: Jeanne finds herself in Marie's nightmare, but true love's power will help them find a way out.





	A Dream of Light and Dance

While Servants did not usually need sleep, Jeanne suddenly found herself nodding off, falling into a nearby chair before everything went dark. 

When she awoke, she was in some kind of lavish palace. Opulent and ornate were the only words Jeanne could think of to describe the room. There was more wealth in that one room than Jeanne had in life. However the beauty lacked life, tainted by sterility and darkness. There was, however, a familiarity to the place even if she hadn’t been there in life. 

“Welcome to the halls I walk,” a voice Jeanne knew intimately said. Marie stood in the doorway, her smile forced. “It seems you have stumbled into my dreams.”

Jeanne shook her head. “What’s going on?”

Marie stepped into the room, took Jeanne’s hand, and led Jeanne to an armchair. After setting Jeanne in the chair, Marie sat down on the chair’s arm, her legs dangling, not quite touching the ground. “I’m uncertain how, but it seems you have found your way into my dreams. If I had to guess, it has something to do with Chaldea’s unique summoning system. As for where we are, this is the Tour du Temple.” Marie was struggling to force her smile.

Jeanne did not know what to say, simply taking Marie’s hand. This was where Marie had awaited her execution. Was she still trapped here, even in death? Cursed to wander these halls for an unforeseeable length of time, in a jail cell made of empty wealth and shackles forged with guilt?

Marie lightly kicked her feet in the air. “I will awaken in a few hours, and you will be free. There are no exits to this nightmare, so we do not need to wander. We can simply wile away the hours in here, together. Or I can leave you in peace. I doubt either of us will remember this when we awaken, and even if I did remember I would not blame you for wishing to be away from me at my worst.”

Jeanne hesitated a moment, then steeled her resolve. With the gentleness of a nurse carrying a wounded soldier, Jeanne lifted Marie and set her in her lap. Before Marie could utter a word, Jeanne wrapped her in an embrace and placed a kiss on the top of her head. “You have seen my darkest self walk the earth and burn our beloved France to the ground, yet you still look at me with nothing but love. How could I be ashamed at the sight of the pain wracking your heart?” 

Marie nestled her head in the crook of Jeanne’s shoulder, her hat falling to the floor just as tears fell from her eyes. She did not utter a single whimper, because Jeanne’s warmth could only stave off so much of the shame she felt at this weakness, this breach of the contract her smile enforced. But she lingered in Jeanne’s embrace, letting her mask fall away. Marie’s love and joy were genuine, but now she could share the grief she felt as well. She had spent her life as a Servant coming to terms with her fate, finding peace with what her people had done to her. But she could not escape the shadows of loneliness and fear that had plagued her in these walls.

At least, she had thought that, but she found solace in Jeanne’s arms.

Neither knew how long that moment lasted, but eventually Marie thanked Jeanne and pulled out a handkerchief. After a minute, she spoke. “I’ve made peace with my death, my execution, and the people’s hatred of me. But it seems I never escaped from these halls. The memories have me chained in place.”

Jeanne was not usually one to be forward, but she had no words to convey the feelings of love she wished to convey to Marie, only actions. She placed a kiss on Marie’s lips, tasting Marie’s reborn smile. “If you are haunted by your memories from your life, we should create new ones together.”

Jeanne had meant that as a long-term plan, but the two women realized that the room looked different. The lifeless wealth was different, now it radiated with a vibrant light. 

Marie stood up from Jeanne’s lap, taking the blonde by the hand and leading her in a dance. Jeanne stumbled along, but Marie was so deft and graceful that Jeanne never stepped on her toes. Marie led the way, slowly moving through the halls together. Everything around them grew brighter and brighter, and a light breeze began to blow through. Marie headed in the direction of the breeze. 

Jeanne may not have understood the dance, and was spending most of her attention keeping up with Marie, but she realized that Marie had found an exit. As the halls they passed through lit up, the direction of the exit became more and more obvious. 

The sound of a clap caused Jeanne and Marie to pause. They turned, and before them stood an all too familiar figure. 

She wore mourning blacks and a face that had never known a smile, but otherwise she looked exactly like the Marie whose hand Jeanne was still holding. “This isn’t enough.” Her words came from far away, as if from the depths of a dungeon. “We must burn our prison to the ground, not fill it with light. A crackling flame and the warmth of the roasted corpses of our enemies are the only things we need. Cease this childishness and take your vengeance alongside me.”

Marie’s smile may have had a tinge of sadness, but it was genuine. “I was hoping to see you, the other me. I want to share this light with you. We may leave this place, finally freed.”

The woman Jeanne couldn’t help thinking of as Marie Alter shook her head. “I have no need for your delusions. You don’t understand. I must have my vengeance. If you do not feel the same, you cannot be a real part of myself. You must be a guard placed in my prison to temper my rage. To leave me weak, to shackle me once again. But I will not fall for your tricks.” Magic crackled between her fingers. 

Jeanne stepped between Marie and Marie Alter. “You’ve seen the darkest side of myself, and aided me in my war against her. I shall now do the same for you, my love.” The words left Jeanne’s lips without thought, and the admission echoed in the air.

Marie was speechless, but Marie Alter finally asked, “You love me?”

Jeanne looked back and forth between the two copies of Marie, lost for words. There were no words for how much she loved Marie. A woman who shined brighter than the sun, more beautiful than any sunrise, who bathed Jeanne in her light. Love was such a small word for the all encompassing feelings Jeanne felt for Marie. Even after seeing Marie at her darkest, the hate that still dwelled in her heart, Jeanne only felt more love for the woman who could love and forgive in spite of that lingering hate. 

Jeanne did not realize she had said all of that out loud until she saw a blush break Marie’s royal confidence. “You really feel that way, Jeanne?”

“I do.” The words still felt small, but they were all Jeanne had.

When she turned back to Marie Alter, the darker version of Marie was gone. That darkness still lingered in Marie’s heart, but a door framed by sunlight stood before them. Marie took Jeanne’s hand, and together the two left Marie’s prison.

The next time Marie dreamed, this time with her true body wrapped in Jeanne’s sleeping arms, she dreamed of dancing through the halls that had once imprisoned her.

**Author's Note:**

> I played through Marie's second interlude recently and loved it. I thought it would work really well with Jeanne, so I borrowed the premise for this little piece. Honestly, I'm really proud of how this turned out. My prose here is some of the best I've written.


End file.
